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Knights of the Throne
The Knights of the Throne, known in High Gothic as the Thronus Equites, were once a noble if somewhat young Successor Chapter created from the lineage of the heroic and stalwart Blood Angels. Cursed with an even higher decree of their angelic gene-sire's prognosticative abilities, the Chapter suffered from horrific visions of their fall, which showed them succumbing to one of their gene-line's twin genetic curses - the Red Thirst - which caused those afflicted battle-brothers to suffer unnatural cravings for blood. However, through these prophetic visions they also saw the promise of their deliverance, if they proved their willingness to allow themselves to follow the visions of a mysterious angelic being that would deliver them salvation in the form of a sacred chalice. However, this false vision would prove to be their undoing, and eventually led to the downfall of the doomed Chapter, and led to half the Chapter becoming the notorious Chaos Warband, the Slaaneshi Angels of the Voracious Chalice, who would slaughter their rage filled kin - defying Khorne and the prophecy that promised them to him, yet still betraying the Imperium and turning their back upon the memory of their Primarch. Chapter History The Knights of the Throne were once a noble if somewhat younger Chapter of the Blood. Originating from the Feudal World known as Arel, the Knights of the Throne were deeply influenced by the chivalric culture of their homeworld, in particular by the planet's ancient cult of the Emperor as the Grail Giver. However, the genetic heritage of their gene-sire, the angelic Primarch Sanguinius, proved to be their downfall. Gifted (or perhaps more truly cursed) with an even higher degree of their Primarch's prophetic abilities than has been observed in even the more physically inclined Chapters of the Blood, the Chapter Masters of the Knights of the Throne were in turn tormented by discordant visions of their Chapter falling to the thirst on the one hand, and on the other beguiled with false hopes by equally unclear dreams of an angelic being promising salvation in the form of a sacred chalice, overflowing with blood. As generation after generation of the Thronus Equites fell deeper in a mire of mysticism and apocalyptic despair, they ever more desperately put aside wider responsibilities to the Imperium to instead desperately seek the mysterious grail that haunted their dreams. This path would eventually lead to their damnation, and their rebirth as the renegade Angels of the Voracious Chalice. The Founding, and the Golden Age The history of the Knights of the Thrones, as recorded in the Codex Thronus Equites, begins with Sandalphon - a Blood Angels veteran of the First Company. Sandalphon was sent to be the Knights of the Thrones first chapter Master during the 26th Founding, and it was he who selected Arel as the Chapters homeworld from a selection of at least four other equally viable worlds. He was the first to suffer visions of the Chapters fall, though he did not share them with his young charges, but suffered them in solitude. His reign saw the Chapter rise from scant beginnings to full Chapter strength, and he lead them to war for the first time against the Orks of Admeanus Minoris. Under his leadership, the Knights of the Throne were much like other Chapters of the Blood, and Codex compliant in all areas aside from those usually deviated from by successors of the Blood Angels. Sandalphon was succeeded by Charles de Franque, the first native Arelian to sit on the Chapter Masters throne. He integrated many Arelian traditions into the Chapters practice of the Sanguinary Cult, and was the first to confide with the Chapter's Librarius and Chaplaincy of the visions, though they remained secret from the brothers of the line. Despite this, Charles de Franque's reign was the golden age of the Thronus Equites, ''as he oversaw both the Paarga system war and the Battle for Benerendil. He maintained stronger ties with the wider Imperium than any subsequent Chapter Master could manage. Though as a young Chapter they received little widespread recognition, it was generally accepted the Knights of the Throne had a great future ahead of them. Well, at least amongst those outside the inner circle who knew of the dreadful omens that blackened the Chapters destiny. Charles de Franque died in battle against the schismatic Astartes Chapter, the Scarpthian Executioners, while fighting alongside John Walts of the Emperor's Yeomen and Ichiban Gokustsu of Blazing Fellowship, with whom he had swore an oath of eternal friendship. The Beginning of the Decline After Charles was slain in the Siege of St. Albanitica Hive on Scarpathia Magna, the rank of Chapter Master fell to Napoleon de Marche. Napoleon was the author of the ''Codex Thronus Equites, one of the few surviving source documents detailing the Chapter's history, belief system and doctrines. Napoleon de Marche was a scholar and mystic as well as a warrior, and sought to discover hope of defying destiny in learning and occult practices. It was under Napoleon that the Knights began to uncover signs that the horrific visions that afflicted it's Chapter Masters were foreshadowed in the ancient lore and myths of their planet, a scheme by the Blood God to corrupt their souls apparently having begun millennia before the Chapters very foundation. His public breakdown at the War Council on Exodus IX, as he was struck by a waking vision of the Chapters demise, marked the end of any internal secrecy about the ill omens afflicting the Chapter - and the beginning of a decline in relations with the wider Imperium. He fell nobly at the Battle of the Alarcius Impasse, leading a doomed charge against the World Eaters that seemed pure madness to those that looked on. This was perhaps true, for he was being lead into the Twelfth Legions axes by a mysterious angelic being of many eyes and many wheels. Napoleon was succeeded by the zealous Henri de'Outremer, the Fourth and at the time apparently the most unstable Chapter Master the Knights of the Throne had ever had. Often compared to the likes of Gabriel Seth, Henri began to seclude the Chapter from the wider Imperium and it's wars, and instead pursed a a narrow quest of vengeance against all and any Traitor Astartes war band pledged to Khorne. Fragmentary records of his successors electoral address seem to indicate Henri sought to have the entire Chapter die in battle against the the followers of the Blood God, thus freeing the Imperium from the threat posed by his Chapter should they fall to their fate. It is possible he was slain in personal combat by Astolfo de Marche, then a member of the Chapter Master's Guard, who swore he would prove the "mad" Henri "wrong" and save the Chapter. The Quest for the Chalice Henri was then replaced by a stalwart officer of the line, Caspian de Forestier - the Fifth and second to last Chapter Master. Caspian resumed recruiting the Chapter to its full strength after Henri's alleged attempt to lead the Chapter into self-destruction. Caspian refused to lead the Chapter off-world until every last battle brother lost was replaced, and called all Knights of the Throne back to Arel until this work was done. When preparations were complete, instead of returning to active service and answering the Imperium's request they muster at Cadia, the entire Chapter took to their ships and headed towards the outer rim of Segmentum Obscurus. Capsian's fate is unknown, but the next time the Knights appeared in Imperial records they were lead by Astolfo de Marche. It was at this time the Ordo Astartes formed a Conclave to ascertain the motivations of the Knights disobedience and withdrawal from their duty. Astolfo de Marche, the last Chapter Master before the fall, was perhaps it greatest commander and leader, but was cursed by his Chapters destiny to lead it directly to its doom. Astolfo lead the Knights far beyond the light of the Astronomicon in pursuit of his visions, and infamously burned the Chapters bridges when he slew an Inquisitor of the Ordo Astartes above the moons of Cursatrix Primus. Utterly consumed by his belief that a many eyed, many wheeled angel bearing an overflowing cup was the sole hope to prevent the Chapters fall to the Lord of Skulls, Astolfo put aside all moral considerations in the desperation to prevent his Chapters corruption. Consorting with Xenos prophets, seeking interpretations of his visions in heretical texts and utilising forbidden technology to navigate far beyond the Emperor's light, Astolfo defied Imperial Law without hesitation. Eventually, Astolfo lead the dwindling remains of the Chapter to a long abandoned shrine world upon the extreme edges of lost Imperial space. This worlds name had long been lost to history, but it is known that it was primarily dedicated to the Cult of Sanguinius. How the long forgotten Imperial colonists who built it ever travelled so far towards the rim is a matter of great debate, as is the fact that they apparently settled no other worlds nearby to support and supply such a planet sized temple world. At this stage of the journey, the Knights had been confronted at every turn by the servants of the Blood God, and more and more brothers lost themselves to the Red Thirst and the Black Rage with every engagement. The very Imperium itself had sent many task forces, some consisting of their own brother Astartes, to force them to return to their home-world and face trail for the murder of an Inquisitor amongst many other crimes. They had made illegal pacts with xenos empires for passage and aid with navigation only to be betrayed and attacked by them as well. As they gazed down upon the nameless holy world that Astolfo assured them was the ultimate destination of their quest to defy the Skull Throne, scans revealed the surface was crawling with numberless daemons and corrupted human slaves. Yet Astolfo was adamant they must make planetfall, declaring that the largest and most heavily daemon infested cathedral on the planet was the place he had seen in his visions, the home of the chalice - and the angel with many eyes and many wings, who would offer it to them. With many battle-brothers wounded, lacking ammunition and tormented by their twin genetic flaws, the Knights were forced to make planetfall at the base of the vast mountain upon which the false Cathedral of the nameless world towered above them, for the Blood Cultists anti-orbital defence network made a closer landing impossible, and the fleet dared not fire upon the site of their potential salvation. What followed was the hardest and most trying battle the Knights of Arel had ever faced, against odds so vast as to defy the imagination of even the Emperor's Angels. Yet Astolfo and his brothers never relented, perhaps as a last final expression of their Chapters once noble and romantic sense of heroism, perhaps because they were now near driven insane by their hatred of the Blood God and the visions of torment he sent them. Yet in spite of all this, the further they advanced, the more brothers were lost to the Red Thirst or the Black Rage, falling away one by one from the upwards advance, instead turning away to rush headlong back down the mountain towards the surging Khornate hordes below. The Chapter, already under strength, lost well over half its numbers in the battle to mount the steps of the False Cathedral. Beautiful even by the standards of Sangininus's bloodline, Astolfo himself was mercifully slain atop the final few steps of the false cathedral, serene in his belief he had lead his brothers to salvation, the very image of the Primarch Sanguinius in death. The Voracious Chalice, and an Angel of Many Eyes and Many Wheels It thus fell to Alexandre de Capitale - the Dominion of the First Company, to lead to the last of the Knights not lost to the Thirst or the numberless enemies into the false cathedral. Even before witnessing the death of his beloved Lord, Alexandre was a tortured soul, almost certainly doomed to fall to the Black Rage before his time. He was nevertheless a great warrior, a great poet, and a passionate believer in the path Astolfo had lead them down. Yet has he pulled himself inside the doors of what he now saw was but a twisted parody of a Imperial holy place, where garish images of cruelty and debauchery covered the walls in the place of saints and miracles. Worst of all, his tacticians eye quickly gathered that the position was utterly indefensible, and that without the promised miracle their Chapter Master had laid down his life for, they would all die amongst the rubble of this blasphemous temple to the arch-enemy. It was at this moment that the Voracious Chalice appeared, not a holy object, but a ravenous abomination, a daemonic creature of the warp in the shape of a cup. Behind, whirled a winged being of many eyes and many wheels, an angel as false as the cathedral around it - no creature of the Emperor or Sanguinius, but unmistakably a Prince of daemon kind. The primordial tyrant of ancient Arel, Galgal the Tempter, who had warred with the warriors of the Skull Throne as the degenerated people of that world cowered in the ruins of the Dark Age of Technology. Though it had no mouth to speak, all who looked upon it instantly knew its name and pedigree, their minds unbidden recalling the many damned titles and dark honours lavished upon this foul creature in the court of Slaanesh. In less than a second, each warrior present knew that this was the being who had masqueraded as a messenger of the Emperor, of Sanguinius, and that there had never been any hope of the chapter remaining pure offered in those false dreams. No, for the truth was that the Emperor on distant Earth barely knew of them, but that the malevolent Gods of the Warp knew each and every last one of their names, and fought like carrion birds over a corpse to claim them. But even as his brothers readied their weapons, Alexandre was already casting his aside. His faith in Chapter Master Astolfo, whose body lay broken up the steps of this wretched place, could not have been wrong. While this was not salvation, it was an escape. This was the only way to stop the Blood God from claiming the Knights of the Throne. The visions had not been lies, they had always been true, simply misinterpreted. The only way to defy the Skull Throne was to drink from the chalice. Galgal screeched with delight in the minds of all present as Alexandre took the chalice in his hand, and passionately exhorted his brothers to follow his example, lest the deaths of all those who fought to bring them to this place have died in vain. There's was no longer to be a war for the Imperium, but would no only be against Khorne, and if they must pledge themselves to the Dark God most opposed to Khorne in the infernal wars that raged across eternity, then so be it. And so he drank, and was damned forever. The Knights of the Throne died in the False Cathedral, on that nameless impossible world far from the Emperor's light. The Angels of the Voracious emerged in their place, and their history is as cursed to the Imperium of Man historians as it is unknown to them. Notable Campaigns While it now requires Inquisitorial level access to learn of them, the Knights of the Throne acquitted themselves well in many Imperial campaigns, particularly in and around their own region of space. Perhaps their most impressive feat of arms before their misfortunes began was the Liberation of the Hive Worlds of Paarga IIV from a Genestealer uprising, followed by the successful evacuation of the planet from the tendril of a Tyranid Hive Fleet that appeared in system soon after. Even in the face of the Genestealers perfidy, that turned the Emperor's own people against one another, the Knights nevertheless passionately strived to divide the innocent from the corrupted. Though the world was lost, the Knights ensured its population could be resettled on a new home, and their delaying action won the respect of those would go on to destroy the greater part of the tendril Hive Fleet over Paarga V. Another great victory to their name was their deceive role in capturing the Eldar Exodite world of Benerendil, paving the way for Imperial colonisation and subsequent conversion into a productive agri world. The indigenous Aeldari had called upon the war hosts of Saim-Hann to aid them, and the Knights excelled in provoking the xenos in open conflict, shortening what could have been a never-ending quagmire of a conflict. A darker chapter of the Knights history was their involvement in the tragic yet necessary Purge of the Scarpathian Executioners, whose overzealous interpretation of the Imperial Creed had turned into madness. Fighting alongside two other young Chapters, the Blazing Fellowship and the Emperor's Yeomen, the bounds of friendship forged on the harsh battlefields of Scarpathia were never quite enough to offset the trauma of having to put down loyal sons of the Emperor, however unhinged. Particularly unnerving was the widely held suspicion that the Scarpathian's mania was rooted in a genetic flaw, a sinister omen of the Chapter's future. Chapter Homeworld Arel was a Feudal world notable for its especially incessant wars but also for a bizarrely naive and strictly adhered to conduct of romantic chivalry, and for a sometimes unusual social system and culture. Chosen as a Space Marine homeworld in light of the courage shown by Arelian Knights who had been conscripted into the Guard as Rough Riders, Arel was a seemingly never ending patchwork of Knightly Orders and Feudal Kingdoms that only seemed to grow smaller and more factional as they fought. The code of chivalry was taken so seriously as to severely limit actual casualties, as Arelian Knights insisted on prioritising one on one duels between commanders and refused to harm "the weak." Moreover, the peculiar family structure of Arel tended towards further political fragmentation. Men never took wives, but sealed alliances between fiefdoms by marrying other Lords, and would ensure they had as many sons as possible by taking as many concubines as they could afford to maintain - amongst whom they would without fail attempt to divide their estate equally, almost always to the dissatisfaction of all involved, resulting in a never ending spiral of smaller Lords fighting other smaller Lords over smaller sets of lands. As a civilisation, it was hardly a success, but as a Space Marine recruiting environment, it was ideal. Yet in truth in the culture of Arel the seeds of corruption were already deep long before it had been surveyed by the Imperium. The angels and heroes that populated its mythology reflected an ancient, primeval conflict between the Chaos Gods over the planet's future. Though it was not recognised until it was far too late, the strange inhuman appearance of Arelian angels spoke to the intervention of Warp daemons in the lost eons of old night, who warred over the planet as the pre-Imperial civilisation collapsed. While Imperial surveyors blithely assumed that prominent place occupied by the a glorious Throne in Arel myth was nothing more than a folk memory of the Golden Throne of Earth, it was in fact the Skull Throne of whom the bards and poets spoke. The pageantry and flamboyant appearance of Arel Knights was not mere feudal pomp, but a lingering aftertaste of Slaaneshi decadence. Unbeknownst to the Chapters founders, these poisonous elements were already seeping into the Chapter even during the first generation of recruits. As they were consumed by their visions of doom, the Knights eventually fully abandoned their homeworld to seek further signs of the Voracious Chalice they mistook for a Grail of Sanguinius. Upon the revelation of their treachery reaching the High Lords, it was ordered the Arel's population be resettled and the planet be transformed into a penal colony. By the time the fleet carrying out this mission arrived in system, the Inquisition had already decided to commit Exterminatus on the world. The resulting standoff and naval battle between the High Lords agents and the Inquisitorial fleet was perceived to be an embarrassment by all, and hastily struck from the Administratum's records. As a result, Arel's status is now officially unknown as the outcome of the Battle of Arel has been censored for the indefinite future. Fortress-Monastery The Fortress-Monastery of the Knights of the Throne was known as "Castle Arel", and to the inhabitants of Arel that is what it was, simply another castle that happened to be larger than any of the worlds greatest cities and carved into the side of the planets highest mountain. Castle Arel held itself aloof from the wars and politics of the feudal dynasties that warred across the planet, simply demanding of the many Kings and Dukes mandatory participation of their nations young Knights and squires in a yearly tourney. Even at the height of raging wars that would surely require the best and brightest, even when a great dynasty needed an heir to survive, all knew to defy the Knights of the Throne was to invite instant destruction, and so none dared deny their sons to the Chapter. Chapter Organisation Officer Ranks *'Archangel Chevalier' - Chapter Master equivalent. Both titles are interchangeable. *'Dominion' - Captain equivalent. *'Principalities' - Lieutenant equivalent. Specialist Ranks Line Ranks Specialist Formations Order of Battle Headquarters Companies Chapter Beliefs The Knights of the Throne belief system was largely centred around a syncretic mix of Blood Angel traditions, passed down from Baal Secundus, and the romantic chivalry of their home-world. In addition to usual Cult practices common amongst Chapters of the Blood, the Knights maintained a number of unique cults based principally around Grail Mythology, Feudal codes of conduct and a reverence for a collection of idealised hero figures. Like many Chapters of the Blood, the Knights also valued art, physical beauty and aesthetic excellence in all things. Particularly notable parts of the Chapters lore were the Cult of the Nine Worthies, the Cult of the Emperor as Grail Giver and the Cult of Sanguinius the Quester. The Cult of the Nine Worthies venerated three sets of three heroes from across Imperial history, consisting of the Three Worthy Primarchs (Sanguinius, Guilliman, Dorn) the Three Worthy Astartes (Raldoron, Sigismund, Dante) and the Three Worthy Mortals (Solar Macharius, Ollanius Pius, Sebastian Thor). The Knights believed these figures embodied the values of chivalry, honour, piety and loyalty to the Imperium. As a younger Chapter of the Blood, they revered Lord Commander Dante, who was already Chapter Master of the Blood Angels at their founding - and their chivalric disposition made them admirers of the Black Templars and of Sigismund, though the temperament of the Knights was in truth hardly similar to the Dorn's knightly successors. Fragmentary records show that even more heroic cults existed in the Chapter, possibly honouring yet more differing orders of Imperial servants, yet such information is now hard to come by. It is strongly suspected that the Knights Librarians may have also revered Three Worthy Witches, its Techmarines Three Worthy Fabricator Generals and and its Chaplains Three Worthy Saints - but if this is true we can only guess at the identity of them. Arelian Grail mythology and angelology melded well with Blood Angel traditions, but had its own distinct character. It is now impossible to tell from what remains of Codex Thronus Equites where the cult of Sanguinius begins and where the Arelian ur-legends of the Slaaneshi false angel Galgal ends. Chapter Gene-Seed As a Chapter of the Blood, the Knights of the Throne were implanted with the gene-seed of Sanguinius, and suffered from the Red Thirst and the Black Rage as a result, and were in addition often plagued by often confusing and traumatic visions of the future, as their ancient forefather was known to do. These tendencies only became more marked upon reimplantation. Combat Doctrine As should be expected of a Chapter who styled themselves Knights, the Knights of the Throne prioritised one on one combat skills and speedy engagement with the enemy. Most Chapter aspirants were already trained as swordsmen by their fathers and brothers before they received gene-seed, resulting in a high level of swordsmanship as well as a strict sense of honour amongst the Chapters ranks. Like the Black Templars, the Knights of the Throne did not use Codex standard Scout Squads, but squired aspirants to battle brothers of the line and sent them into battle side by side. Like many close combat focused Chapters, the Knights of the Throne valued Assault Squads and deep strike tactics, aimed at beheading enemy leadership. Deathwatch Service Though a few veterans of the campaigns in the Paarga system and on Benerendil did become part of the Deathwatch in the early days of the Chapter, for most of their cursed history the Knights of the Throne spurred involvement in the Deathwatch, too obsessed with confronting their doom to concern themselves with the Imperium's wider struggle against the alien. Notable Members *'Sandalphon' - A Blood Angels veteran of the First Company, Sandalphon was granted the honour of leading the newly Founded Knights of the Thrones as its first Chapter Master. *'Charles de Franque -'''The Second Chapter Master of the Knights of the Throne, and the first native Arelian to sit on the Chapter Masters throne *'Napoleon de Marche -'The third Chapter Master, and author of the ''Codex Thronus Equites, one of the few surviving source documents detailing the Chapter's history, belief system and doctrines. *'Henri de' Outremer -' The Fourth Chapter Master, Henri sought to see the Chapter perish entirely in battle. His brothers rebelled against his fatalism. *'Caspian de Forestier -'''The Fifth and second to last Chapter Master, who lead the Knights away from their home-world in search of the chalice. *'Astolfo de Marche''' - The last Chapter Master before the fall, Astolfo lead the Knights far beyond the light of the Astronomicon in pursuit of his visions. *'Alexandre de Capitale' - The Dominion of the First Company, who lead the last of the Knights not lost to the Thirst into the false cathedral, and their lead them in drinking from the Voracious. He is now the Arch-Heresiarch of the Angels of the Voracious Chalice, and was the first to drink the blood of his brothers. Chapter Fleet Nearly all information on the Chapter Fleet of the Knights of the Throne is long lost, though fragmentary picts held in the Inquisitorial archive indicate ships of remarkable artistic design. Any relation between the fleet of the loyal chapter and the fleet of the Voracious is primarily theoretical, but it is believed that most of the original fleet must have been destroyed on the quest for the chalice. Chapter Relics Most of the Chapters relics are either lost, sealed with the Vaults of the Ordo Astartes or are now desecrated in the hands of the Voracious. However, the High Lords of Terra have been able to secure a copy of the Codex Thronus Equites, ''a magnificent illuminated manuscript that now serves as the primary source of lore on the fallen Chapter. After being studied, it now has pride of place in a private Terran collection, amongst other objects that would be forbidden on any other world. Chapter Appearance Chapter Colours The Knights of the Throne wore a light shade of red, with gold pauldrons and white highlighting. Knights were known to customise their elements with various artistic designs. Chapter Badge The badge of the Knights of the Throne depicts a creature from Arelan angelolgy known as a Thronus, an Angel of the Emperor that nevertheless possess few recognisably human characteristics. It is now widely believed to represent a repressed folk memory of the daemon Galgal's rule over parts of Arel during Old Night, where it warred with a daemonic Kingdom of Khorne for the soul of the planet's people. Chapter Relations Allies The Knights of the Throne were known to tend towards those Chapters of the Blood who favoured the gentle, artistic side of Sanguinius nature, such as the Blood Angels themselves, as opposed to the likes of the Flesh Tearers, who embodied the Primarch's rage. Their chivalric admiration of Sigismund lead them to seek close ties with the sons of Dorn, in particular the Black Templars, with whom they shared a certain degree of combat style and some organisational practices - despite a profound difference of temperament. Enemies As is the lot of many Blood Angels successors, the Knights of the Throne were often pursued by daemons of Khorne, who sought to turn them - as had been promised to the Skull God centuries before their founding was conceived. For this reason, the Knights cultivated an extreme hatred of the Blood God, seeking to confound and defy him at every turn. Though apparently righteous and commendable, this unreasoning hatred eventually lead them to set aside all other considerations, and willingly become traitors. Notable Quotes By the Knights of the Throne About the Knights of the Throne Gallery Knights Throne_Battle-Brother.png|Knights of the Throne Tactical Marine of the 4th Company. Category:Blood Angels Successors Category:Imperium Category:Space Marine Chapters Category:Space Marines Category:26th Founding